Strength Training vs Cardio to change your physique
This is a bit of a misleading title, since there is no competition between the two. It’s entirely possible to build both aspects of fitness concurrently and with the evolution of fitness competitions like Crossfit etc we are seeing first-hand how you can get very fit and very strong at the same time.
What is strength training? Simply put “resistance training” is anything that brings your muscles or a muscle to the point of fatigue within the 1-30 repetition range (yes, it has been proven now that you can build muscle with high rep training, given you train at or near muscular failure). Some quick strength training facts:
Strength training is an incredibly powerful for changing your physique. Give the right nutritionally environment it can either: get you looking amazingly toned (when combined with sufficient protein and a caloric maintainence/deficit) OR get you incredibly jacked if you do it for long enough in a caloric surplus (gaining weight).
Rep ranges: you can build muscle in almost any rep range, but you’ll probably notice you’re strength develop more in low rep ranges. It’s better to use different rep ranges to add variety and stimulation rather than marrying yourself to one particualr rep range
Volume: this is the total volume of training you so on a particular muscle group. For example if we did 3 sets of hard squats and bench press on a Monday and Thursday, we would have done a total of 6 sets across the quads, glutes & chest - the targeted muscles by those exercises. Numerous studies have shown massive gains in strength and building muscle with just 1 set, this is because there is diminishing returns. For example training twice a week would probably produce almost double the result, but training 3 times a week wouldn’t triple the result, and so on and so on. More isn’t always better, if you’re smart you can get a great result form strength training with very little.
Training to failure & “Effective Reps”: this means taking the muscle(s) in question to the point where you can’t do anymore, it’s essential that you take your working sets into the effective rep range. To give an example is you’re doing hamstring curls for a set of 10, and 10 is the absolute maximum you can do, as your near “failure”, reps 8,9&10 would be considered the effective reps, the reps that when you do them can cause an adaptation for you to build muscle and get stronger.
Cardiovascular training is a completely different mode of exercise, and all of the adaptations it causes are not perceptible by the naked eye, cardio training doesn’t change your physique directly on the outside in any way. Again, things like CrossFit and other fitness comps have blurred the lines a bit in the sense that they take strength training movements and perform them under high intensity conditions.
Cardiovascular training, particularly “steady state” cardio like running, cycling etc at a steady pace burns calories very quickly, when compared to strength training. It also has massive health benefits and will leave you feeling amazing if you commit to it for long enough. To the point, even if you have no cardiovascular fitness related goals, you should still be trying to do a few bouts of low intensity cardio training across the week.
The best adaptations for the heart, lungs and cardiovascular system are happening at lower intensities than you think, in fact we call this Zone 2 training - at around 60-70% of our maximum heart rate. You should be able to hold a conversation comfortably at this intensity. Most people who don’t train, if they were to try and keep there heart rate at this level during a run, would probably have to stop and walk regularly. This is absolutely a positive thing: you don’t need to push yourself that hard to start reaping the benfits & furthermore training at a slightly lower intensity is much easier on the joints and produces less of post exercise hunger than high intensity cardio & weights.
The take home message from this blog:
You don’t need to do that much volume of strength training to produce results & you don’t need to push yourself that hard on cardio to get amazing physical and mental health benefits. Consistency is key & consistency comes easy when the schedule is manageable.
